At what point do you have to start looking seriously at head studs? This weekend I'll be putting on a mini maxx, 5" turbo back exhaust, S&B cai, flo pro egr delete with elbow, cac pipe, and coolant filter kit. I'm really starting to get worried about the stock tranny and the head gaskets so when should I realistically be looking at doing some major engine work? And can just a converter make the tranny last or is that more of a just make it last a little longer type of deal? I'm thinking if I can swing it I will need to do the head studs soon then after the studs are finished maybe I will start looking at up pipes manifolds and turbo upgrades but once again will a new converter hold that or am I getting into built tranny territory.. I've seen the Rudy's heavy duty trans kit and I'm not at all scared of doing the trans myself but is the kit any good? Sorry for so many questions I'm a converting cummins guy this is my first powerstroke thanks for your time

At what point do you have to start looking seriously at head studs? This weekend I'll be putting on a mini maxx, 5" turbo back exhaust, S&B cai, flo pro egr delete with elbow, cac pipe, and coolant filter kit. I'm really starting to get worried about the stock tranny and the head gaskets so when should I realistically be looking at doing some major engine work? And can just a converter make the tranny last or is that more of a just make it last a little longer type of deal? I'm thinking if I can swing it I will need to do the head studs soon then after the studs are finished maybe I will start looking at up pipes manifolds and turbo upgrades but once again will a new converter hold that or am I getting into built tranny territory.. I've seen the Rudy's heavy duty trans kit and I'm not at all scared of doing the trans myself but is the kit any good? Sorry for so many questions I'm a converting cummins guy this is my first powerstroke thanks for your time

Chris

I run the 300 tune daily and haven't changed to studs yet. I may be on borrowed time, but there are a lot of guys on here running high HP tunes with stock bolts and trannys, just don't be stupid with the power.

Questions to ask yourself:
-Do I have a really heave right foot? Yes? Then probably should look into studs and tranny soonish
-Do I have access to a lift? No? Then wait and do all your cab off stuff at the same time.

Studs and manifolds require cab off so you might as well do them at the same time to save you a lot of labor costs.

theres no way of knowing like mentioned your right foot will play a big part in it but then again there are guys tuned with heavy foots and have still not had to do studs then there is stock trucks that blew them so when it happens it will happen if your worried about it get it done now and stop worrying or have the money ready

Well I got everything on the truck yesterday and man what a difference im gonna go ahead and plan for studs this winter luckily I can do all the work so I can save a ton. Looks like my front cover is leaking is this common? Guess ill just tackle that when I have the cab off. Does anyone have any input as far as the transmission?

I normally would put folks buisness out there but I called and they told me $3800-$4000 which included rebuilt heads. Doesnt souns bad considering most around here want $3200-$3400 just to do the studs.

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